DIY Salsa Canning for Beginners

Have you wanted to try canning but thought it was too mysterious or complicated? Let me assure you, it really can be a simple process, even for beginners! You will want to press print on this and save it or even pin it to your Pinterest board.

Why I Love Canning

As long as I can remember, I have been helping my parents harvest and preserve our homegrown garden produce. Our assembly-line family productions are some of the best bonding times I can remember. I’m lucky to have married a gardener, which enables me to carry on this meaningful tradition. The more I learn about the importance of avoiding the BPA, synthetic chemicals, stabilizers and additives found in store-bought shelf-stable food, the more I value good, honest homespun food preservation.

With a young family of my own, the full-scale operation from my childhood memories has been downsized and simplified. These days, we’re usually working on a dozen or less pints at a time and eliminating any unnecessary steps, as compared to churning out hundreds of quarts of perfected, preserved produce specimens like my parents still do (even without my siblings and I being around to help).

I admit, even though I’ve successfully canned a wide variety of fruits and veggies dozens of times before, I still get intimidated when it comes to preserving the harvest we’ve labored for all summer. When canning season rolls around, I have always rolled up my sleeves and stepped in as captain at the helm – directing the execution of each little step – since it hasn’t been a big part of my hubby’s background.

This year we witnessed a huge turning point.

For the first time, my non-perfectionistic speedster spouse took on the canning duty all himself. That’s what convinced me, canning really can be a super simple, straightforward process that even beginners can handle. You don’t have to have a full-scale enterprise in order to prepare delicious locally grown food for your family to enjoy through the winter months or to use as memorable gifts for friends and coworkers. You just need a few basic supplies a few smallish chunks of time – like after the kiddos are in bed. I love my pressure canner.

Basic Salsa Canning Preparation

Prepare the tomatoes by washing, coring and quartering. Chop in food processor or by hand until they reach your desired level of chunkiness. Use a strainer and drain off excess juice. You can reserve this juice for adding to soups or rice, or discard it if you like. (Classic canning recipes call for additional steps to remove the peels and seeds from the tomatoes, we prefer to skip this step to save time. We have found that we are equally pleased with the texture of the salsa, especially when using the food processor we don’t notice the peels at all.)

Prepare the peppers, onions, garlic and cilantro by rinsing, removing peels, stems and/or pith. Roughly chop by hand and then finely chop in the food processor. Adding the cilantro with the onions in the food processor helps immensely with getting the cilantro into small pieces.

Stir together all chopped ingredients in a stockpot on the stove, adding the amount of lime juice or apple cider vinegar listed above to ensure your salsa is acidic enough to stay well preserved. Also stir in salt and spices to taste. See the recipes linked above for ideas on how to season your salsa. (You can also purchase a salsa seasoning mix here). Note: One time-saving, practical modification my husband used was to stop and refrigerate the prepared veggies over night, moving onto the next step the following evening after our toddler was tucked in bed.

Bring your salsa to a gentle boil and simmer for 20 minutes.

While salsa is simmering, place lids and jars in another pot and pour boiling water over them to sterilize. You can also use your sterilize cycle on your dishwasher for the jars and place lids in a sauce pan on the stove with simmering water.

Fill the jars with salsa (can use jar funnel, ladle or liquid measuring cup), leaving at least 1/2 inch empty space at the top of the jar. Drain hot water off lids.

Wipe the rim of the jar with a clean, damp cloth and check lid to make sure both are completely free of any salsa debris to ensure a strong seal. Place lid on jar and hand-tighten the ring.

Follow the canning instructions based on your chosen method below.

Water Bath Canning Method Instructions

No extra special supplies needed. Perfect for the true beginner. You can always invest in additional gadgets later.

Place jars in your large stockpot or canner with a little free space around each jar. If you are using a stock pot this may be 3-5 pint jars, or if using a larger canner you may be able to fit up to 9 pint jars.

Cover the jars with very hot or boiling water until the water completely covers the jars by at least 1-2 inches. Using hot water at this step prevents the jars from breaking from avoiding a quick temperature change.

Turn the burner to high and boil steadily for 15 to 25 minutes, less for a low elevation and more for a higher elevation.

Remove the jars carefully from the water with tongs, jar lifter (pictured here) or metal rack (pictured here) and place on a folded towel on your countertop to cool.

Monitor jars for the next 12-24 hours. The lids will make a popping sound when they seal. After 24 hours, check the jar lids by pressing in the center and make sure they are immovable, sucked down into a concave position and do not make a clicking sound when you release your finger. Remove the bands and store them for reuse. Salsa will be optimum if consumed within 6 months and may be stored for up to 18 months, though taste, color and texture may start to slightly decline over time.

Pressure Canner Method Instructions

Perfect for beginners who have a gifted or inherited pressure canner but confused about how to use it.

Prepare your pressure canner by placing its rack in the bottom and filling the bottom with about 2-4 inches of very hot water or boiling water. (We boil water in an electric kettle, but you can also add water from the tap and bring to a boil in the canner before adding jars).

Place as many jars as will fit, keeping a small amount of free space around each jar (not touching sides or other jars).

Put the canner lid on, turning it until it is tightly sealed and locked into place.

Using our old-style pressure cooker, we set the jiggler at 10 pounds and process for 10 minutes, which means when it starts jiggling we set the timer for 10 minutes of continuous jiggling or processing time, slightly turning down the heat of the burner from time to time if the jiggling gets too intense. For more information on modern pressure canners with a pressure dial or digital guage, or for information on canning at very high or low altitudes, click here.

After processing time, turn off the burner and let the pressure canner cool until the pressure is released and the lid can turn easily.

Remove the jars carefully from the water with tongs, jar lifter (pictured here) or metal rack (pictured here) and place on a folded towel on your countertop to cool.

Monitor jars for the next 12-24 hours. The lids will make a popping sound when they seal. After 24 hours, check the jar lids by pressing in the center and make sure they are immovable, sucked down into a concave position and do not make a clicking sound when you release your finger. Remove the bands and store them for reuse. Salsa will be optimum if consumed within 6 months and may be stored for up to 18 months, though taste, color and texture may start to slightly decline over time.

Written by:: Rachel

Rachel Shivers has written 63 post in this blog.

Rachel is a family and infant photographer in Manhattan, Kansas. She enjoys adventuring with her two-year-old son, innovating with fresh ingredients in the kitchen and falling in love all over again with her handsome hubby.

Comments

I love this idea of canning salsa!
I have a recipe I use all the time for homemade salsa. But I use ( organic) canned tomatoes. Can I fo this ame process with my own recipe and get the same canning results. I do add a little lemon to my recipe. And the canned tomatoes alteady have citric acid in them.

Thanks for sharing! It’s only June and we have way too many (super sweet) tomatoes. I looked at other recipes that seemed too complicated/time consuming. I added chopped kale and anaheim peppers from the garden also and the flavor is the perfect combo of zest and sweetness! Don’t know why I bothered canning my first batch of 4 half pints, it will be eaten right away! LOL! Thank you again!

Thank you for simplifying the canning process. Very helpful! I ran into a problem after I boiled my salsa. The taste changed completely and was not edible. I had all the same ingredients as your basic salsa but altered the amount of each ingredient according to taste. Is it absolutely necessary to boil the salsa first? Wouldn’t the water bath process kill any bacteria?

You mention in the first method…to “remove the bands and store them for later use”. What bands are you mentioning? I must be missed it in the instructions but cannot find what the bands are anywhere haha. I’d really like to try this recipe ?

You mention in the first method…to “remove the bands and store them for later use”. What bands are you mentioning? I must be missed it in the instructions but cannot find what the bands are anywhere haha. I’d really like to try this recipe ?

I just wanted to share my method of canning tomatoes and salsa. When I married my husband he showed me a easier faster way of canning. For canning tomates we skin and deseed them, I cut tomatoes in small pieces then put them in a large pot on stove and cook for about a hour on low. While the tomatoes are cooking we put our clean jars in the oven at 170, then put lids and rings in boiling water for at least 20 min before canning. When tomatoes are done we increase in temp on the tomatoes to boiling then we take jars out of oven add salt to bottom of jars and then add the Boling tomatoes then add a table spoon of lemon juice wipe off top of rims and put the hot lids and rings and that is the easiest way to can. I have never had any that did not seal, or go bad before we got around to opening a jar. I hope this gives another alternative to canning. Happy canning!

I love the ‘sound’ of this recipe.. I like a saltier salsa, not sweet.. Gonna try it. I had a recipe very similar, but lost:( It had the addition of tomato paste (lots of paste, maybe 24 oz??) It helped to thicken and give a richer flavor. I think I removed some of the seeds, and drained the juice from juicier tomato batches? Cant remember. I wonder, should I increase salt or vinegar if adding the tomato paste? Sure wish I hadnt lost the recipe!! I ‘organized’ them over the winter, lol. Seems as though I mishandled the job!! I would just run with it, and use a pressure canner to be sure. But hate that a pressure canner makes a softer salsa, mushy almost.. Like the bigger, firmer chunks of tomato that you get with just a water bath method. Thanks for the recipe..

I like a thinker salsa, so I just let my pot simmer away until it has reduced down. This is how I have done it for years, basic recipe, full proof! My last post I cooked down by 1/2, about 3 hours, simmer without a lid. Thanks for sharing with your readers just how easy salsa canning is!

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Comment

Name *

Email *

Website

you MUST enable javascript to be able to comment

Notify me of new posts by email.

Hi, We’re Annie & Will!

Annie is from Kansas, Will is from West Virginia. We are a husband and wife that loves to travel, attend live shows, eat good food and drink coffee together. Life is best lived - and dreamed - together! Learn more about us, and feel free to contact us too. We are glad you are here!